Free courtesy of Netgalley. I really enjoyed this book, it was all about loss and love and how to deal with both.

Rose can no longer face Christmas and believes she has no right to be happy, or spend time with her loved ones, after the accident that killed her boyfriend.

Charlie is also having a difficult time after his divorce, he misses his daughter and can't face Christmas this year.

The both book Sea view cottage over the Christmas period to be isolated and alone until the whole thing is over. But they booked the cottage separately with the owners. (One with the wife and one with the husband), who are having their own issues and nobody realises until they both arrive on the same day.

Will Rose and Charlie, share the space and get on or are they both too damaged by their experiences?

I would recommend this book, it really makes you think of how we deal with our issues and how we control the narrative.

I am a huge fan of Christmas and everything that comes with it but am acutely aware that it very often isn't the happiest time of the year and the hype doesnt always match reality.
We meet Rose and Charlie, Rose was always a massive fan of Christmas....until she wasn't and Charlie is having a tough time and facing his first Christmas alone. Both expecting to have Christmas alone are shocked when they realise their holiday getaway booking in Donegal has mistakenly been double booked and they are now facing spending Christmas together.
The story explores loss and grief and definitely pulled at my heart strings. I enjoyed the book and the way the back story was crafted in but thought the ending perhaps crept up a little too quickly.

Following a tragedy one Christmas, Rose is spending the holiday alone for the third year in a row. She decides to visit her gran's old cottage which is now an airbnb. When she gets there though, it is already taken, by Charlie who has his own troubles. After some to-ing and fro-ing, they agree to share.

This is a pleasant story which explore issues of loss and grief to give it some depth. I enjoyed it on the whole but there were some things which niggled a little for me, mainly the rather rushed ending especially the solving of one couple's problems which seemed to come out of nowhere. Having said that, there will be plenty of people who love this. Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC.

Oh dear, I’m on floods of tears! What a lovely, warm hearted story, perfect for any time of year. Real characters going through a really painful time with a “will they, won’t they?” Theme running throughout. Obviously a gloriously happy ending as every Christmas story should have. It’s a big cosy Christmas hug in a book - enjoy!

Thank you to Netgalley the author and publishers for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review

I absolutely loved this book and the two main characters, Rose and Charlie. Both want to spend Christmas alone but there is a double booking at Seaview Cottage and they reluctantly end up staying there together. The backstories of Rose and Charlie weren’t immediately obvious which really got me wondering why they so desperately wanted to be alone at such a magical time of year. This was quite a slow burn of a read to start with but kept me engaged, wanting to know how it was all going to turn out. Heartbreaking at times but also heartwarming and the main location beautifully described. A fabulous read that was more than a Christmas romance but one that had some quite thought provoking moments. Thank you to Random House, Cornerstone and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Such a cosy, fun Christmas rom-com. There are some deeper elements involved, but I felt this added so much to the story and gave another level of connection to the characters. This really reminded me of The Holiday and gave all those feel-good heart-warming finds you want in a festive read and gets you in the mood for the holidays. You can't go wrong with this it has everything you would want and I highly recommend.

What’s not to love, a Christmas romcom that could come straight from the pages of a Richard Curtis film, one to while away the dreary winter evenings

Second chance ✔️
Dual POV ✔️
Single dad ✔️
Christmas ✔️
Small town ✔️q

This Christmas is a wonderful story where ‘The Holiday’ meets ‘The Flat Share’ and you’re left wanting to stay at Granny Molly’s cottage for Christmas yourself.

Upon a simple mistake of double booking, Charlie and Rose come face to face of having to share the cottage together, but how do you share a cottage and avoid one another for a set amount of days? Is it really that easy, or are Rose and Charlie kidding themselves?

This story is something fairly different to what I read, and it is an EXTREME slow burn which at times did put me off due to the pace of how things were progressing. Rose is someone who allows grief to consume her daily while masking it when she’s surrounded by people. Charlie is a single dad who’s experiencing Christmas alone for the first time and dealing with the heartbreak of not having his daughter near, and in unlikely circumstances, these two slowly join together and realise they have more in common than they realise.

I loved the characters and loved how independent they both were, however I felt that Charlie was quite rude at first and needed a good kick up the ass, or for the stick to be taken out of his ass. While I understand why he reacted the way he did at first, I found him to very impolite. As for Rose, I think she’s a sweetheart and was way too hard on herself, I truthfully think she deserved to be happy a long time ago.

Despite the things that I loved, the stories pacing was way too slow for me and off putting, I often felt as if I was waiting for the other shoe to drop and things to progress massively where as they never did, and when things DID progress, it self as though the ending was rushed and things that took place between Charlie and Rose weren’t realistic enough compared to the rest of the story.

Emma Heatherington is incredibly talented and I think she’s wrote a wonderful book, but I think it’s suited better for those aged over 30.

Thank you NetGalley for approving me to read this.

I really loved this book! It has The Holiday vibes and is like a big cuddle in a book. Sure, you know how the book is going to end from page 1, but I didn’t care one jot!! It was lovely, made me smile, made me cry. It has all the feels and I would definitely recommend it as a light, comforting, hot chocolate with marshmallows kinda book.

Beautifully sad. Such tender moments, tears as two people struggle to get up, put one foot in front of the other and get through their days coping with loss. Their dogs help keep them grounded, help them have a reason to keep going and mend their cracks. A lovely read that grabs your heart, squeezes it and ultimately leaves you believing in life.

I really enjoyed this book, one I would read again on the countdown to Christmas. A typical Christmas romance which had a lovely feel-good factor.

Everything you could want from a Christmas romance - two endearing lead characters, a scenic location, snow and a cosy cottage. It’s a heart-warming story about Rose and Charlie, strangers who both want to escape the Christmas festivities but end up having to make the best of sharing a holiday cottage together. I liked that it was written from both Rose and Charlie’s points of view. This is the first Emma Heatherington that I’ve read and it’s encouraged me to read more of her books.

Nothing says Happy Easter like reading a Christmas book lol. This would be an excellent book to read in the run up to Christmas as it does provide the festive feels and would be great to get you in the spirit.

I loved the main characters - they weren't perfect, but that held it's own appeal.

The only thing that made this a 4 rather than 5 star read was the obligatory misunderstanding / self sabotage before the HEA.

I really enjoyed this. A beautiful setting and great characters. A cosy Christmassy read. Highly recommended.

Such a lovely story, and not needed to be read at Christmas but it would definitely make a cosy Christmas read. I love how it was written with the lives of our 2 main characters being unfolded - very cleverly may I add - piece by piece. I found that I had to keep reading as I needed to know where it was going to end. Well written and some lovely scenic descriptions also to really get you 'there' with them.

Reading a Christmas book at the beginning of summer felt a bit odd but I got lost in the story pretty quickly. Charlie and Rose’s pain was raw and I felt it as I was reading. I could practically picture the cottage and the village and felt like I had been transported there. I zoomed through the book in a day and I was sad to say goodbye to the characters at the end. It makes me want to go to a village in Ireland during the holidays. This such a heartwarming book and I highly recommend it! Thank you NetGalley for the advance copy.

This is a beautifully written book. Rose and Charlie somehow end up in a double booked cottage for Christmas, when they had each been expecting a nice solitary getaway.
Their story is filled with both sadness and hope. It is the other characters, such as Rusty and his less than friendly wife, who make up so much of the story, with emotions dating back to family feuds. It is not just a 'romantic' story, but one of empathy, hurts and joys.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me a review copy which I very much enjoyed.

I couldn't wait to read this beauty, what amazing characters and stories. This book is a must for the festive period, I cannot wait to read it again, curled up beside my own cosy fire and step into the Love, loss, inner turmoil and self discovery that is Rose..
I just reviewed This Christmas by Emma Heatherington. #ThisChristmas #NetGalley

Outstanding. I'll be sorry to not have it to read tonight, but couldn't put the book down! I was fully immersed in this from the start… fascinating!

My first Christmas book of the year and we are only in April. But I absolutely adored it. It transported me to the most magical and wonderful time of the year. I loved the storyline a s the characters and I felt like it was a big hug in book form.